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SCUTTLEBUTT 2322 - April 13, 2007
Scuttlebutt is a digest of major sailing news, commentary, opinions,
features and dock talk . . . with a North American focus. Scuttlebutt is
distributed each weekday, with support provided by UBS, main partner of
Alinghi, Defender of the 32nd America's Cup
(http://www.ubs.com/sailing).
START LINE FIASCO
(TheDailySail uncovered start line problems at the Princess Sofia Trophy
and revealed all in a story posted on their subscription web site.
Here’s an excerpt.)
The event was a success in many ways, but a dark cloud sat over the
regatta with yet another media friendly policy decision from ISAF
leaving many competitors at the event feeling cold. During the ISAF Race
Management Meeting held last autumn a decision was made to attempt to
reduce the number of general recalls, with a view to making races start
closer to their advertised start time, allowing television a better
chance to keep to their scheduling. In Palma, we understand, race
officers were briefed before the Princess Sofia Regatta to proceed with
racing giving only individual recalls and not call a general recall
provided they felt the start line was even. This, of course led to the
ludicrous situation where many competitors were pushing the line, hiding
their sail number behind other peoples’ sails and managing to start on
occasions as much as 10s of metres ahead of the line without receiving
an OCS or being recalled.
At the Princess Sofia, the issue was particularly noticeable on the Finn
course where Skandia Team GBR coach David (Sid) Howlett was monitoring
the racing. “The race officers in Palma took it to an extreme.
Personally I have not seen the instruction to race officers about
exactly what they are to do but there were lots of sailors over the line
that were not called back,” he told thedailysail. “There were starts in
the Finn class that should definitely have been recalled but were not.
On one of the last starts there were boats that I would say were 40-50m
over. -- http://thedailysail.com
THE NEXT VENUE?
Emirates have confirmed they would like Dubai – and not New Zealand – to
host the 2010 America’s Cup after pouring hundreds of millions of
dirhams into the joint Arab-Kiwi sailing team Emirates Team New Zealand
since 2004. Boutros Boutros, Emirates Group Vice-President of
Sponsorship, told XPRESS that they will formally ask the team to defend
their title in Dubai if they beat the Swiss Cup holders, Alinghi, in
July.
The round-robin stage of the Louis Vuitton Cup – which decides the
challenger to Alinghi’s crown – begins on Monday with 12 boats and crews
battling it out in Valencia, Spain. Talks so far with the New Zealand
side of the partnership have been favourable, he said. “Emirates Team
New Zealand is considering coming to Dubai,” Boutros said. “They believe
Dubai can host the America’s Cup.” -- Derek Baldwin, Xpress, full story:
http://www.xpress4me.com/sport/uae/watersports/20000710.html
ESTABLISHING A BENCHMARK
Serial Russian adventurer-sailor Fedor Konyukhov is committed to set a
benchmark for sailing solo, non-stop around the Antarctica Cup Race
Track. Starting in December 2007, Fedor will sail his 27 metre (88’)
boat “Alye Parusa” non-stop around the challenging Antarctica Cup
Racetrack to set a benchmark for others to break. The boat is currently
based in Falmouth, UK where she is undergoing main refit at Pendennis
Shipyard. The boat will arrive in Australia at the beginning of December
2007.
The 55 year old from Moscow has an unrivalled history of adventure
behind him, including the Around Alone and Vendee Globe races, a solo
trans-Atlantic rowing record and arctic dog-sledding. Chairman of
Antarctica Cup Management, Bob Williams, is confident that by setting a
benchmark Fedor will inspire future competitors and establish the
Antarctica Cup Race Track as a challenge either as a record to be
broken, or for a full-on race. – John Roberson,
http://www.antarcticacup.com
THE NEW “IT” BAGS FOR SPRING AND SUMMER
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ONE OF OUR SPORT’S MOST TREASURED ASSETS
A true gentleman, and one of the most impressive people that the
curmudgeon has ever met, Olin Stephens is celebrating his 99th birthday
Friday. His firm, Sparkman and Stephens, achieved a world-wide
reputation for their quality design work with both racing and cruising
boat, and they also designed the 12-metres Columbia, Constellation,
Freedom, Intrepid and Courageous. For his many contributions to the
sport of sailing, in 1964 Stephens was awarded US Sailing’s most
prestigious award, the Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy. He also received
US Sailing’s National Sportsmanship Trophy in 2004. Happy birthday Olin!
QUOTE / UNQUOTE – Chris Dickson
"We have 10 of the world's top match racers out there in the Louis
Vuitton Cup, each with their own style and experience. Each and every
one of them is capable of winning a start on any given day. As we have
seen in the close racing last year, any of these teams are capable of
earning a win - one mistake or equipment failure can open the door."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/4/story.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10433972
VIDEO OF THE WEEK
Since the Sailrocket team moved to the speedstrip at Walvis Bay, Namibia
to continue their quest to claim the title of Outright Fastest in the
world of speed sailing (48.7 knots), they have learned that if they are
to achieve their goal, they will have to overcome the teething pains of
their craft. Earlier this week, they felt the conditions were ripe for a
record run... until they experienced a "flat tire." Watch the
frightening video (2:28 minutes) to understand what that means, and see
the comments that driver Paul Larsen provided following the events of
the day. Also, if you have a video you like, please send us your
suggestions for next week’s Video of the Week. Click here for this
week’s video: http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/07/0409
COACH BOAT ACCIDENT
The priority given to coaching at Olympic-level events (or even some
junior events) is evidenced by how many RIBS are now seen at these
events. The entourage-factor is alive and well, and the logistics of
dealing not only with the competitors and their gear, but now also with
the extra support people and their boats/ trailers, has likely stretched
most event organizers. There are other problems with this new reality,
as was relayed by American Anna Tunnicliffe, who commented on a
RIB-related accident that occurred in her Laser Radial fleet last week
at the 38 Trofeo SAR Princesa Sofia Mapfre in Palma de Mallorca, Spain:
I want to send my best wishes to Poland’s Katarzyna Szotynska for a fast
and speedy recovery from her accident half way through the (Palma)
regatta. Katarzyna spent four days in hospital after her hand was jammed
between two Lasers while towing. Two coach boats sped past either side
of a line of towed Lasers and their wash flung the Lasers together
trapping and injuring Katarzyna’s hand. It should never have happened
and it’s a very important lesson for all coaches and support boats to
control their wakes and stay clear of towed boats.”
It was August 2002 in Greece when the United States' top female
boardsailor, Kimberly Birkenfeld, suffered severe brain and spinal
injuries when she was run over by a coach boat. Szotynska, who is a
3-time Laser Radial Women's World Champion, was injured after the second
race in Palma, and God knows how many other folks have been injured or
otherwise affected in the years in between. Hmm…maybe change is not
always a good thing. -- Scuttleblog, http://tinyurl.com/2nassp
SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY
Team NZ pitted themselves against Alinghi this week, upsetting other
challengers concerned about the benefits the Swiss syndicate received
from the exercise. Sailing and operations director Kevin Shoebridge
agreed there had been some controversy in Valencia over the move. But
Team NZ felt it was the best way to build up to the Louis Vuitton Cup
challengers' series beginning on Tuesday morning (NZT).
"But in the end, we're just trying to do the thing that's best for our
team and we've sailed against a lot of the teams," he said. "We feel if
we want to measure ourselves properly, we have to do that against a form
team. That's what we've tried to do. We're not too concerned really what
others think about it." He declined to comment on a report that the two
races with Alinghi ended at 1-1. "I'm not allowed to talk about this,"
he said with a laugh. -- http://www.stuff.co.nz/4025087a1823.html
SAILING SHORTS
* Peter Bromby (BER) is aiming for five-in-a-row as he sets his sights
on the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games with the help of funding from the IOC
Olympic Solidarity Scholarship. Having experienced the heartbreak of a
fourth place Olympic finish in Sydney, the Bermudian Star sailor is
gunning for glory in 2008 with new crew Bill McNiven. This is the second
time he has received the Olympic Solidarity Scholarship, after also
receiving funding for his Athens 2004 Olympic campaign. 'The funds which
we receive from the Olympic Solidarity Scholarship will be used for both
travel costs and coaching costs,' says Bromby. --
http://www.sailing.org/default.asp?ID=j1~FnA,kl
* Thierry Peponnet steps down from FRA 93 afterguard and hand over to
Tanguy Cariou. Former helmsman of Areva Challenge, Peponnet was replaced
by Sébastien Col in July last year, and now feels an “important” move
was needed in the afterguard to counteract the team’s average results in
Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 13. Thierry Peponnet will continue working
with the team alongside coach Fabrice Levet in performance analysis. --
http://www.americascup.com/en/
* Sixty boats from seven countries are entered in the 2007 Fullpower
Melges 24 World Championship May 3-12, hosted by the Santa Cruz Yacht
Club. The entry lists includes 27 Corinthians---boats without pros on
board. Many will tune up in the Pacific Coast Championship April 21-22
hosted by the San Francisco Yacht Club on San Francisco Bay. Santa Cruz
action will start with the Pre-Worlds May 5 and 6, followed by five days
of championship racing May 8-12. – http://www.melges24worlds2007.com
* TiVo Time – Even our readers who hate the direction that the America’s
Cup has taken should enjoy viewing the 60-minute “The America's Cup 1851
2007” on ESPN Classic Friday night. – 7:00 PM EDT. Gary Jobson has been
collecting film and photographic material of this historical event over
the past 30 years. Check out the internet preview of this show hosted by
Walter Cronkite and Gary Jobson, and then setup your DVR:
http://jobsonsailing.com/reports/38
* There will be four boats on the starting line this Sunday for the
final leg of the Velux 5 Oceans from Norfolk, Virginia to Bilbao, Spain.
The fifth boat, Graham Dalton’s A Southern Man –AGD is still more than
1000 miles away from Norfolk, but hopes to get to there by the Thursday
cutoff, sit out the mandatory 72 hours, and then start out after the
others. -- http://www.velux5oceans.com/
* (America’s Cup) Regatta Director Dyer Jones inadvertently supplied me
with a new definition of a second-tier team when he mentioned that,
"some of teams here don't even have a weather boat." Imagine that. And
to think that, before teams were limited to a total of six support
boats, no-excuse-to-lose people like Dennis Conner (in the Auckland
days) were using that many just for the meteorology squad. The big teams
here, you can be sure, have at least one weather boat to augment the
info they get from America's Cup Management, which maintains data buoys
in two of the three sailing areas. – Kimball Livingston, Sail Magazine,
http://sailmagazine.blogspot.com/2007/04/they-dont-have-what.html
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LETTERS TO THE CURMUDGEON
Letters selected for publication must include the writer's name, and may
be edited for clarity or simplicity (letters shall be no longer than 250
words). You only get one letter per subject, so give it your best shot,
don't whine if others disagree, and save your bashing and personal
attacks for elsewhere. As an alternative, a more open environment for
discussion is available on the Scuttlebutt Forum.
-- Scuttlebutt Letters: editor@sailingscuttlebutt.com
-- Scuttlebutt Forum: http://sailingscuttlebutt.com/forum
* From Rodger Martin: Come on chaps! I am one who doesn't like the IRC
rule for a couple of reasons. I don't approve of negative criticism
without an alternative solution, but please hear me out! First: IRC
disapproves of clean light (not necessarily 'Sportboat') types that had
a happy times under regional PHRF regimes where local boats sailed
against each other over years and got the PHRF ratings they 'deserved.'
Yet, when you convert their IRC ratings into PHRF ratings, you come up
with PHRF ratings that are 33% 'faster' than these boats
well-established PHRF ratings! Appeals to the RORC IRC committee with
comparable PHRF results by one of our owners have fallen on Deaf Ears .
. . Perhaps for reasons of dilution there is no 'sportboat' IRC system
in North America, leaving a helluva lot of sailors out in the cold.
Second: This rule, as the Channel Handicap System (CHS) was used
successfully in England for rating 'family cruisers' and informal racers
(like our PHRF) so they could race together. Some of these were
twin-keeled (so they could dry out upright in the mud) production boats
and their practical ilk. As Americans, we of course, have turned this
'Mom & Pop' arrangement into a 'Grand Prix' rule! In doing so we have
told the world that a heavy boat with its arse and snout out of the
water and lots of ballast (stability is unmeasured: the main source of
power!) are the right boats to race!
* From Commodore Thomas Little, Cedar Point Yacht Club: The IRC vs. PHRF
debate may not be resolvable in Scuttlebutt posts. However, there is a
place where One Design Racing and PHRF Handicap Racing remains the focus
of attention on Long Island Sound. Many active sailboat racers in Long
Island Sound have little interest in IRC or its goals and objectives.
Cedar Point Yacht Club, located in Westport CT offers an active, high
quality racing program for those racing sailors that have become
refugees as a result of the IRC debate.
Cedar Point focuses on meeting the needs of racing sailors as we pursue
our Club’s mission statement of “providing sailboat racing and related
sailing, social and recreational activities for its members and to
support, promote and encourage the sport of sailboat racing in its many
forms.” Frequently a sponsor of local, regional and national Regattas,
we see first hand each week the enthusiasm and passion that One Design
Fleets and PHRF Racers have for sailing. For many this is more than just
a hobby, it’s a life choice. Feelings of being displaced or not
supported by IRC are replaced at Cedar Point by our full and
enthusiastic support of One Design and PHRF Handicap racing.
* From John Riise: Munificence? Pouring east to west? Geez Louise, Hal
Burchard's de-naming, re-naming ceremony seems a bit top-heavy. Latitude
38 ran the 'lite' version, written by John Vigor, about 10 years ago and
it remains one of the most asked for, and accessed articles on their
website. You can find it here:
http://www.latitude38.com/features/dename.htm. From personal experience
I can attest Vigor's ceremony works just as well as Burchard's.
* From Bill Reed: A proper renaming ceremony took place aboard Cecilia J
of Marion when owned by Joe Plumb. The 82 foot Eldredge-McInnis schooner
that became the royal yacht of Monaco after Joe's death was originally
named for his wife, Cecilia. When she told him in 1960 that he was
spending too much time on the yacht with his crew of four, and she
wanted a divorce, Joe and his buddies provisioned the boat and sailed
off into the North Atlantic. After several days of heavy drinking, Joe
took the fire axe and chopped the carved name 'Cecilia J' out of the
bulwarks and burned it. He then systematically went through the vessel
and collected the linen monogramed with the ship's name, the cut
crystal, the silver, the china and anything else with Cecilia's name or
initials and overboard it went. Only after running out of booze a full
month later did they return to Marion, tired, beat up (Joe was a Golden
Gloves winner and the cook was his sparring partner) ratty looking but
cleansed of Cecilia. He later married Dorothy G, renamed the schooner
and built a Friendship Sloop for the two of them to enjoy together,
named Dotty G, of which I became the proud owner.
* From Brad Avery: One of the highlights of my youth was sailing with
Bill Robinson in the 1973 Round Grenada Race. Bill was guest skipper of
Gene Sydnor's S&S 48 Etoile. Well known sailor Greg Tuxworth was the
sailing master. One of our competitors was Don Street in his even then
venerable yawl Iolaire. I was one of the kids crewing on local charter
boats that Bill took on as crew. The race went on all day and Bill
steered much of the time through a huge range of conditions as we worked
around the Island. He was focused on racing and we pushed the boat hard,
but Bill's genial nature kept it fun.
We ended up 3rd in class and after we crossed the line, Bill thanked
each of us for going along. Of course he wrote an article about the race
and a few years later it appeared in one of his many books, "The Sailing
Life." In reading the story I was struck by his detailed account of
everything that went on, from sail changes to conversations to the grand
scenery of the Island. Most of all, Bill conveyed the fun and adventure
of racing around a Caribbean Island, along with the passion of a man who
loved sailing.
CURMUDGEON’S OBSERVATION
Blessed are those who can give without remembering and take without
forgetting.
Special thanks to True Wind bags and Mount Gay Rum Gear.
Scuttlebutt is also supported by UBS, main partner of Alinghi, the
Defender of the 32nd America's Cup.
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